cbs 5 reporter john ramos on the technology and the apprehension. >> reporter: from his 12th floor office, alameda county sheriff greg ahern has a bird's- eye view of oakland's lake merritt. and that's a useful view it have when trouble is breaking out, as well. so for that reason -- >> started looking into the potential usage of a drone within alameda county sheriff's office. >> reporter: the sheriff's office used to have a helicopter. but it became too expensive. so now they're considering buying one of the new generation of camera-equipped drones being market to law enforcement. they can be assembled from the trunk of a car and give an instant aerial view to police. sheriff ahern says it would only be used in emergencies. >> simply deployed in a tactical situation when the people on the ground thought it would be beneficial to have an aerial view of what was happening. >> reporter: but the public has mixed feelings about the miniature spy planes. >> you have to weigh the positive and the negatives. will they spy or help solve crimes? >> i welcome it especially in oakland. >> kind of me